'I stole 14, not 60 cattle' - Thief tells police

Moro Musah, a 33-year-old farmer, has been apprehended by the Tumu Police for allegedly stealing cattle in October 2023 at Kroboi in the Sissala East Municipality of the Upper West Region.

In a caution statement presented to the Circuit Court in Wa, the accused, Moro Musah, admitted to the theft but said: “I stole 14 of the cattle, not the reported 60.”

He was put before the court allegedly charged with stealing 60 cattle and was remanded in police custody pending investigation.

This follows a complaint lodged with the Tumu Police by one Barry Abdoulaye, a Fulani herdsman from Yigantu in Sissala East, who reported the theft of his 60 cattle.

The prosecutor, ACP Albert Adiita, presenting the facts to the court, said the Wellembele police motor patrol team, on October 29, 2023, intercepted a Hyundai Grace mini-bus with registration number AS-6743-19, driven by Wakilu Abubakari, loaded with three cattle suspected to have been stolen.

Upon interrogation, Abubakari mentioned Musah as the one who had tasked him to transport the animals from Kroboi to Wa.

A subsequent telephone conversation between Abubakari and Musah confirmed the latter’s ownership of the cattle.

The vehicle with the cattle was sent to the Wellembele Police Station during the investigations, where Barry Abdoulaye, the complainant, identified a distinct mark on the three cattle matching some of his stolen livestock.

ACP Adiita said further examination of Abdoulaye’s kraal revealed similar markings on his other cattle, confirming the suspicion of theft by Musah.

However, a search for Musah proved futile until December 8, 2023, when he was eventually apprehended by the police, ACP Adiita said.

The accused, after interrogation, returned the 14 cattle, while the search for the rest continued.

The court remanded the accused person to reappear on April 16, 2024.